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USS Lewis B. Puller (FFG 23)

USS LEWIS B. PULLER was the 15^th ship in the OLIVER HAZARD PERRY class and its homeport was San Diego in California. After decommissioning the ship was transfered to the Egyptian Navy on September 18, 1998, where it was renamed TOSHKA.

USS LEWIS B. PULLER was named after Lieutenant General Lewis "Chesty" Burwell Puller, a colorful veteran of the Korean fighting, four World War II campaigns and expeditionary service in China, Nicaragua and Haiti, and one of the most decorated Marines in the Corps, and the only Leatherneck ever to win the Navy Cross five times for heroism and gallantry in action. Promoted to his final rank and placed on the temporary disability retired list 1 November 1955, he died on 11 October 1971 in Hampton, Virginia, after a long illness.

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Crew List:

This section contains the names of sailors who served aboard USS LEWIS B. PULLER. It is no official listing but contains the names of sailors who submitted their information.

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• Click here to see which USS LEWIS B. PULLER memorabilia are currently for sale on ebay.

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USS LEWIS B. PULLER Cruise Books:

• Cruise Book 1991

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USS LEWIS B. PULLER History:

USS LEWIS B. PULLER was an OLIVER HAZARD PERRY-class guided missile frigate ordered on February 28, 1977, and built by Todd Pacific Shipyards, Los Angeles Division at San Pedro, California. She was laid down on May 23, 1979, launched on March 15, 1980, and commissioned on April 17, 1982.

By late September 1983, USS LEWIS B. PULLER was operating as part of Carrier Battle Group "Bravo" built around USS KITTY HAWK (CV 63), alongside USS LONG BEACH (CGN 9), USS O'BRIEN (DD 975), USS BERKELEY (DDG 15), USS CHANDLER (DDG 996), USS STEIN (FF 1065), USS WABASH (AOR 5), and USS MAUNA KEA (AE 22). The group executed Readiex 83-7 from September 26-October 10, 1983, and then called at San Francisco for Fleet Week from October 13-16, 1983, when multiple units entered the bay together beneath the Golden Gate Bridge. USS LEWIS B. PULLER was also photographed underway on September 17, 1983, during this pre-deployment workup period.

The battle group exercised again during Readiex 84-1 from November 15-December 11, 1983, and also conducted the amphibious exercise Kernel Usher. On January 13, 1984, the group departed San Diego for a Western Pacific and Indian Ocean deployment, joining USS DAVIDSON (FF 1045) and USS HAROLD E. HOLT (FF 1074) in the Hawaii operating areas for amphibious and anti-submarine training from January 20-29, 1984, followed by a brief port period at Pearl Harbor.

In the Mariana Islands area, the "Bravo" and "Echo" groups completed a pass exercise on February 12-13, 1984, before additional anti-submarine operations in the South China Sea and an upkeep period at Subic Bay from February 20-March 3, 1984, followed by a naval gunfire exercise in Philippine waters. On March 11, 1984, during a memorial observance for USS SPENCE (DD 512), USS LEWIS B. PULLER and USS BERKELEY maneuvered in close formation with other units during the ceremony. After a four-day port visit at Pusan (Busan), Battle Group "Bravo" participated in Team Spirit 84 from March 19-24, 1984, a combined United States-Republic of Korea exercise conducted in the Sea of Japan in proximity to the Soviet Union Far East operating areas. The group then returned toward Subic Bay and, after an abbreviated upkeep period, sailed again on April 8, 1984, bound for the Middle East.

That April 1984 movement occurred against the backdrop of the Iran-Iraq War and the concurrent escalation of attacks on merchant shipping (often described as the "Tanker War"), alongside continuing great-power naval competition in the Indian Ocean and northern Arabian Sea. Battle Group "Bravo" operated in the northern Arabian Sea during this period, and on June 10, 1984, responsibility in the area was assumed by USS AMERICA (CV 66)'s group. "Bravo" then began its return voyage toward Australia, crossed the equator on June 21, 1984, and spent five days at Fremantle before continuing via Subic Bay and onward across the Pacific. The deployment concluded with the battle group's return to San Diego on August 1, 1984.

In the mid-1980s, USS LEWIS B. PULLER also appeared in the orbit of USS ENTERPRISE (CVN 65)'s Pacific battle group training and visibility events. During Fleet Week activities on October 12, 1985, USS ENTERPRISE led a multi-ship parade into San Francisco Bay that included numerous escorts, among them USS LEWIS B. PULLER. After USS ENTERPRISE grounded on Bishop Rock on November 2, 1985, divers conducting inspections during subsequent repairs also investigated underwater damage to USS LEWIS B. PULLER.

USS LEWIS B. PULLER spent much of 1986 operating in the Western Pacific as part of the USS ENTERPRISE battle group. In June 1986, she operated in waters off South Korea in connection with bilateral training activity and made port calls including Jinhae and Busan.

In 1987, she was paired with major fleet units for at least one well-documented deployment cycle connected to the annual combined U.S.-ROK exercise "Team Spirit", an exercise series that - against the backdrop of persistent tension on the Korean Peninsula - focused on interoperability and reinforcement scenarios. In that context, USS LEWIS B. PULLER operated with USS RANGER (CV 61) and USS LONG BEACH from March 2, 1987 to April 26, 1987. Also in 1987, LEWIS B. PULLER shifted into the Naval Reserve Force at Long Beach.

In 1988, USS LEWIS B. PULLER continued the Naval Reserve Force pattern of alternating structured readiness workups with public-facing port engagements. From April 22, 1988 to April 24, 1988, she participated in exercise "Varsity Player 88-2" with USS GEORGE PHILIP (FFG 12), USS WADSWORTH (FFG 9), and USS RACINE (LST 1191), reflecting the West Coast frigate community's emphasis on tactical proficiency and certification events even for reserve-assigned ships. Later that summer, she took part in civic and public-relations activity in Seattle for the annual Seafair period from July 29, 1988 to August 1, 1988, before returning to Long Beach on August 11, 1988.

By the early 1990s, the ship's publicly visible footprint reflects both readiness activity and operational tasking that intersected with post-Cold War contingency demands. During the Operation Desert Shield period, USS LEWIS B. PULLER is documented underway in a multi-ship formation operating in the Red Sea, consistent with the broad mobilization of U.S. naval forces that supported the coalition posture in 1990-1991. For 1991, a contemporaneous "year in review" summary captures the rhythm of her schedule in month-by-month terms: the year opened with a holiday standdown and structured training periods at Long Beach; February 1991 included a propulsion-plant evaluation; March 1991 and April 1991 included training and travel periods connected to San Diego alongside readiness exercises; the late spring and early summer featured missile exercises; July 1991 included an "Operation Desert Salute" event and law-enforcement-oriented operations off the West Coast; August 1991 included a major exercise period (noted as "Varsity Player 91") and a port visit to New Westminster; September 1991 included North Pacific operations and a port visit to Victoria; October 1991 included a port visit to Seattle and gunnery exercise activity back in the Southern California operating areas; and November 1991 transitioned into a docked selected restricted availability period. A separate, independently dated operational record entry shows that on July 5, 1991, USS CROMMELIN (FFG 37) moored outboard of USS LEWIS B. PULLER at Pier 16 at Naval Station Long Beach, placing her physically in Long Beach during that summer window. The same 1991 summary indicates that in December 1991 she entered dry dock and that a change of command occurred during that month.

USS LEWIS B. PULLER was decommissioned on September 18, 1998, stricken the same day, and transferred to the Egyptian Navy, where she was renamed ENS TOSHKA (F 906).

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